Genesis 9:6-26

6 Whoever sheds human blood, by humans let his blood be shed, Because God made humans in his image reflecting God's very nature.

7 You're here to bear fruit, reproduce, lavish life on the Earth, live bountifully!"

8 Then God spoke to Noah and his sons:

9 "I'm setting up my covenant with you including your children who will come after you,

10 along with everything alive around you - birds, farm animals, wild animals - that came out of the ship with you.

11 I'm setting up my covenant with you that never again will everything living be destroyed by floodwaters; no, never again will a flood destroy the Earth."

12 God continued, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and everything living around you and everyone living after you.

13 I'm putting my rainbow in the clouds, a sign of the covenant between me and the Earth.

14 From now on, when I form a cloud over the Earth and the rainbow appears in the cloud,

15 I'll remember my covenant between me and you and everything living, that never again will floodwaters destroy all life.

16 When the rainbow appears in the cloud, I'll see it and remember the eternal covenant between God and everything living, every last living creature on Earth."

17 And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant that I've set up between me and everything living on the Earth."

18 The sons of Noah who came out of the ship were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ham was the father of Canaan.

19 These are the three sons of Noah; from these three the whole Earth was populated.

20 Noah, a farmer, was the first to plant a vineyard.

21 He drank from its wine, got drunk and passed out, naked in his tent.

22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw that his father was naked and told his two brothers who were outside the tent.

23 Shem and Japheth took a cloak, held it between them from their shoulders, walked backwards and covered their father's nakedness, keeping their faces turned away so they did not see their father's exposed body.

24 When Noah woke up with his hangover, he learned what his youngest son had done.

25 He said, Cursed be Canaan! A slave of slaves, a slave to his brothers!

26 Blessed be God, the God of Shem, but Canaan shall be his slave.

Genesis 9:6-26 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 9

In this chapter we have an account of God's blessing Noah and his sons, being just come out of the ark, with a renewal of the blessing of propagating their species, and replenishing the earth, the dominion over the creatures, and a freedom from the fear of them; with liberty to eat flesh, only it must not be eaten with blood; with a providential care and preservation of their lives from men and beasts, by making a law that that man or beast should die that shed man's blood, Ge 9:1-6 and after repeating the blessing of procreation, Ge 9:7 mention is made of a covenant God made with Noah, his sons, and all the creatures, that he would drown the world no more, the token of which should be the rainbow in the cloud, Ge 9:8-17 the names of the sons of Noah are observed, by whom the earth was repeopled, Ge 9:18,19 and seem to be observed for the sake of an event after recorded; Noah having planted a vineyard, and drank too freely of the wine of it, lay down uncovered in his tent, which Ham seeing, told his two brothers of it, who in a very modest manner covered him, Ge 9:20-23 of all which Noah being sensible when he awoke, cursed Canaan the son of Ham, and blessed Shem and Japheth, Ge 9:24-27 and the chapter is concluded with the age and death of Noah, Ge 9:28,29.